“Globally, economic growth centers are often clustered around universities. This shows how significant the role of higher education is,” he said during the National Assembly of Professors of State Universities with Legal Entities (MDGB PTN-BH) here on Friday.
According to him, world-class universities show that strong research output directly correlates with economic growth.
“The parameter is royalty from research-based products, but that is the norm in advanced countries,” he explained.
He cited data showing that 54 of the world’s top 100 science and technology-based economic clusters are driven or supported by universities.
Therefore, he said that Indonesia’s 24 PTN-BH universities must actively collaborate with or help develop industries in specific fields.
Yuliarto also emphasized that to achieve a prosperous society, Indonesia must become an upper-income country, with per capita income above US$15 thousand, or approximately Rp18 million per month.
According to him, to achieve the upper-income country status, Indonesia requires annual economic growth of 8 percent.
That level of growth is not new to Indonesia, as records show the country achieved over 8 percent five times, most recently in 1997, he mentioned.
"The last record (of 8-percent economic growth) happened in 1997, when we successfully built a strong industry,” he said.
Yuliarto stressed that strong industries are important, as small-scale industries alone cannot drive significant growth.
President Prabowo Subianto, he said, views the target to increase income as something that must be pursued, as achieving it would ensure the fulfillment of the basic needs of all citizens, such as education, children's schooling, healthcare, and nutrition.
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Translator: Zulfikar, Kenzu
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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